第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
What if you arrived home to find a delicious hot meal waiting for you，prepared by your very own kitchen robot? It might sound like science fiction，but professors at the university of Tokyo have taken the first steps toward making that scenario a reality．The team recently introduced a humanoid kitchen robot that can pour tea and other drinks into cups and serve them to guests．When teatime is over，the robot can also wash the dishes and put them away．
In California，another interesting kitchen robot has been developed．Called the Ready-bot，it can pick up objects and either store them in cabinets or put them in the trash．It also carries a separate floor-cleaning robot that can operate by itself．Unlike the Japanese robot，Readybot is not humanoid．Instead，it looks more like a large box with arms and wheels．
Readybot was created by engineers and designers who established a club called the Readybot Challenge．They believe that in the future millions of robots will be needed in homes to perform ordinary household tasks．Readybot is just the first step in their plan to create a robot that can tackle jobs not only in kitchens but in other rooms of homes and in offices as well．
Clearly there are technological hurdles to overcome before robots can cook a complete dinner，and there are also many safety concerns．Not everyone（especially parents）would be comfortable with the idea of robots in their house，manipulating hot pans and sharp knives．The European Commission recently funded a project to study these concerns．
56．What does the writer imply about the Japanese robot?
A．It performs fewer functions than readybot can．
B．it looks more like a person than Readybot does．
C．It speaks more languages than Readybot does．
D．It costs 1ess to manufacture than Readybot does．
57．Where do the engineers and designers hope that Readybot will operate in the future?
A．On spacecraft B．In automobiles
C．On playgrounds D．At companies
58．What does the writer imply about parents?
A．They have shown tremendous interest in kitchen robots．
B．They don’t have strong opinions about kitchen robots．
C．They might think that kitchen robots could be dangerous．
D．They can’t wait to buy kitchen robots for their homes．
59．According to the writer，what has the European Commission done for the project?
A．It has built factories B．It has printed manuals
C．It has hired workers D．It has provided money
第二节：完形填空{共20小题．每小题1．5分．满分30分）
阅读下面的短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出最佳选项．
When I come across a good article in reading newspapers，I often want to cut and keep it．But just as I am about to do so，I find the article on the 36 side is as much interesting．It may be a discussion of the way to 37 in good health，or advice about how to 38 and conduct yourself in society．If I cut the front articles，the opposite one is likely to suffer 39，leaving one half of it or keeping the text 40 the title．Therefore，the scissors（剪刀）would stay before they start，41 the cutting would be halfway done when I find out the 42 result．
Sometimes two things are to be done at the same time，both worth your43．You can only take up one of them；the other has to wait or be 44 up．But you know the future is unpredictable—the changed situation may not 45 you to do what is left behind．Thus you are 46 in a difficult position and feel sad．How come nice 47 and clever ideas should gather around all at once? It may happen that your life 48 greatly on your preference of your one choice to the other．
In fact, that is what49 is like；we are often 50 with the two opposite sides of a thing which are both desirable（引人的）51 a newspaper cutting．It often occurs that our attention is drawn to the thing only 52 we get into another．The 53may be more important than the latter and give rise to a divided mind．I54 remember a philosopher’s remarks：“When one door shuts，another opens in life．”So a casual（不经意的）55 may not be a bad one．
36．A．same B．opposite C．either D．front
37．A．get B．bring C．1ead D．keep
38．A．do B．help C．1ead D．dress
39．A．damage B．destroy C．hurt D．injury
40．A．on B．for C．without D．off
41．A．or B．but C．so D．for
42．A．satisfying B．regrettable C．surprising D．impossible
43．A．courage B．patience C．strength D．attention
44．A．given B．picked C．held D．made
45．A．persuade B．agree C．allow D．tell
46．A．filled B．struck C．caught D．attracted
47．A．chances B．conditions C．wishes D．ways
48．A．progresses B．goes C．changes D．improves
49．A．study B．1ife C．society D．nature
50．A．supplied B．connected C．fixed D．faced
51．A．to B．1ike C．as D．by
52．A．as B．until C．before D．after
53．A．following B．former C．above D．next
54．A．still B．also C．almost D．once
55．A．treatment B．action C．choice D．remark
—How come you are late for school again，Bob?
—_____ ．
A．Because I missed the bus B．By bus and then on foot
C．I can’t agree more D．It’s quite wrong
Our English teacher devoted herself____ to her teaching and it earned her a good
reputation in our school．
A．strongly B．extremely C．entirely D．freely
—Which type of car do you like better?
— ______．They are both expensive and high emission（高排量）．
A．None B．Either C．Neither D．Both
The 2010 World Cup will be held in South Africa，and no one can ____ which country will be the champion．
A．fancy B．estimate C．value D．predict
